Chapter 151: Cultivating Ice Berries!

For now, this is the only method worth trying. Ren Boyuan placed an Ice Fruit into a space kept at the exact temperature of the Arctic, only to find that the fruit showed no reaction whatsoever, without the slightest sign of revival!

He then asked Chu Xiao if there had been anything unusual near the location where the Ice Fruit was found. According to Chu Xiao's recollection, the Ice Fruit had simply grown on a tree, and nothing strange was discovered in the surrounding area!

This left Ren Boyuan at an impasse. If there were truly no other options, Ren Boyuan would have to make a personal trip to the Arctic to observe the environment closely. However, Chu Xiao suddenly recalled that the only unusual detail was that although the location was a cave, the open sky was clearly visible!

This realization brought a sudden breakthrough to Ren Boyuan. For a fruit as miraculous as the Ice Fruit, how could it lack the nourishing power of moonlight? Although ordinary people might look at the starry night sky and perceive no difference, it held immense and vital energy for plant life!

Shortly after, Ren Boyuan constructed a small experimental laboratory outdoors specifically for cultivating the Ice Fruit. Before long, the Ice Fruit showed signs of revival, beginning to take root and sprout little by little. Under Ren Boyuan's specialized cultivation, the Ice Fruit quickly germinated and broke through the soil!

Seeing that the Ice Fruit was responding, Ren Boyuan decided to implant the remaining Ice Fruits into the bodies of the elite soldiers first. This would bolster their living forces to better combat the Underworld King. Meanwhile, the representatives of the three nations requested that their genetic transformation be completed first so they could join Chu Xiao in fighting the Underworld King!

While it was not yet feasible to alter the genes of the ordinary soldiers from the three nations, completing the transformation for their representatives first was entirely achievable. Ren Boyuan promptly outlined the necessary conditions and procedures for the genetic transformation, and before long, the representatives of the three nations successfully completed their transformations.

Now capable of fighting the Underworld King's robots, these individuals possessed bodies dozens of times stronger than before. Although they might not yet match Chu Xiao's ability to take down an enemy with a single punch, as long as they absorbed sufficient psychic energy, they would soon surpass Chu Xiao!

The representatives of the three nations were overjoyed at finally being able to combat the Underworld King's robots. Although the United States and the State of Jiuzhou had historically experienced friction, they were now firmly united against the Underworld King, all sharing the desire to eliminate him swiftly and restore peace and prosperity to the common people.

However, Ren Boyuan cautioned Chu Xiao that simply absorbing psychic energy was not enough; one had to engage in continuous physical conditioning to perfectly harness the power of that psychic energy. Otherwise, even with enough psychic energy absorbed, lacking a strong physique would make it impossible to unleash its true potential!

Such individuals might even end up weaker than those who had not absorbed any psychic energy at all. Armed with this knowledge, Chu Xiao led the representatives of the three nations to train alongside the soldiers, filling their daily schedules to the brim with physical conditioning to prepare their bodies for bearing psychic energy in the future.

Within a few days, Chu Xiao felt the power within his body increase noticeably. This was likely because he had absorbed a sufficient amount of psychic energy, yet his physical body had previously been insufficiently conditioned to unleash its full might.

After a few days of rigorous training, the representatives of the three nations also felt that their inner strength had grown considerably stronger than before. Each of them mapped out high-intensity training regimens every day to continuously elevate their physical conditioning. According to Ren Boyuan, advancing to each new level would unlock brand-new skills!

Chu Xiao eagerly anticipated what new skills would be awakened upon leveling up. Watching the Ice Fruits cultivated by Ren Boyuan grow larger day by day, producing several new fruits within a matter of days, Ren Boyuan felt an immense sense of joy, much like a parent watching their child grow step by step.

As the number of genetically transformed soldiers increased, so did the forces capable of resisting the Underworld King. Meanwhile, the Underworld King's side was continuously infusing greater amounts of psychic energy into his robots to grant them formidable strength.

The current generation of robots was already capable of telekinesis—moving objects through the air—and launching attacks against humans without the need for any external equipment. This kind of power was no less formidable than traditional weaponry, and its destructive force would continue to multiply alongside the increase in psychic energy!

At a certain threshold, it could even shatter the Earth. However, the robots also required robust mechanical bodies to withstand higher volumes of psychic energy, so the Underworld King was forced to continuously research and develop new models, as the existing robots could only endure a fraction of that energy.

Taking advantage of the fact that the forces of Jiuzhou had not yet completed their full genetic transformation, the Underworld King infused his first- and second-generation robots with maximum levels of psychic energy, seizing the opportunity to deplete their living forces while simultaneously stepping up the research and development of new robotic models.

"Dr. Ren, we need to maximize the enhancement of the soldiers as quickly as possible. The Underworld King will likely make a move soon!"

Chu Xiao felt a growing sense of urgency; as long as the Underworld King remained inactive, Chu Xiao's heart remained ill at ease. To ensure that the soldiers could unleash the full power of their psychic energy in the future, Chu Xiao arranged high-intensity training sessions for them every day.

By the end of each day, the soldiers were so exhausted that they practically collapsed onto their beds the moment they touched them. They even had to maintain horse stances while eating their meals, leaving only their sleeping hours for proper rest. Yet not a single person uttered a word of complaint, because they all knew Chu Xiao was doing this for their own good!

He did not want them to lose their lives the moment they stepped onto the battlefield. Furthermore, Chu Xiao pushed himself even harder than they did, training every single day until the middle of the night before finally retiring. Now, everyone shared a single, unwavering goal: to defeat the Underworld King and restore the lives of the common people to normalcy as swiftly as possible!

Ren Boyuan was equally busy, harvesting fully ripened Ice Fruits every day to allow more soldiers to undergo genetic transformation, while also researching ways to let soldiers independently choose their own skills upon leveling up in the future.

However, this was not something that could be researched overnight. Chu Xiao felt that the past few days of training had made him increasingly robust and his abilities progressively greater. Meanwhile, Wang Lulu had not seen Chu Xiao for several days and grew deeply curious about what he had been up to all this time!

Following the path to his training grounds, she discovered Chu Xiao leading the soldiers in grueling drills. Seeing how hard Chu Xiao was pushing himself, Wang Lulu felt a pang of heartache. She noticed that for the past few days, he had been sleeping among the troops right alongside the soldiers, and trailing closely behind Chu Xiao were none other than the representatives of the three nations!

This left Wang Lulu quite surprised. Those representatives from the three nations had never previously seemed like the hardworking sort; what had happened to cause such a drastic change in their personalities over this period? Could it truly be that they had been influenced by Chu Xiao?

Seeing Wang Lulu watching him from the side, Chu Xiao halted his movements and walked over to her. The silly, affectionate expression on Chu Xiao's face as he gazed at Wang Lulu was utterly charming. When Chu Xiao reached her side, he noticed her face was covered in a light sheen of sweat.

Wang Lulu produced a handkerchief from her pocket and gently helped Chu Xiao wipe away the sweat. As Chu Xiao stood there with a goofy smile, the representatives of the three nations walked over. Seeing the tender affection passing between the two, they couldn't help but tease Chu Xiao while secretly envying him for having someone so deeply caring by his side!

"Big Brother Xiao, how have these past two days been? Don't push yourself too hard. Tonight, I'll cook your favorite braised pork belly!"

"We want to eat that too! Why aren't you inviting us?"

Hearing about the delicious food awaiting them that evening, Irwin chimed in with teasing remarks. His words caused Wang Lulu to blush deeply, lowering her head as a rosy tint spread across her cheeks. Chu Xiao looked at Wang Lulu's flustered state and found her immensely adorable!

"You guys continue training; I'm leaving, I won't pay attention to you anymore!"

Flustered, Wang Lulu finished speaking, lowered her head, and hurried away. Even as she ran, the corners of her lips curled upward into a very happy smile. Watching Wang Lulu's retreating figure, Chu Xiao couldn't help but chuckle out loud in amusement!